Beginning with the Ubume Bird

Chapter 288: Chapter 14 Steel and the Living Dead

Just as Yin Xiong was about to speak, a boy in a flat cap, his chin resting on the steering wheel, cut in, “Hao, I think you’re overthinking it. Area B is a total mess right now, who’d care what we’re up to? Even if someone did, do you think a mere third-tier Wandering Deity could pluck chestnuts out of the fire? Sounds like a death wish to me.”

The young man turned his head, his tone icy, “How do you even know he’s just a third-tier Wandering Deity?”

The boy rubbed his eyes, “Why are you getting mad at me? Alright, alright, you’re right, he’s not a Wandering Deity, he’s Ramu Jue in disguise, wow, Yin Xiong! What do we do? The only fourth-tier living Buddha in area B has got his eye on us, looks like the Four Heavenly Kings from Danzuo Automobiles are going to show up~”

Towards the end, his tone and expression became very exaggerated.

The young man’s eyes narrowed, and his expression grew even more unsavory.

“Alright, Ji Ou. Cut the sarcasm.”

Yin Xiong intervened, speaking calmly to Hao, “Even if he isn’t from the Black Star battle wagons, it’s not like we can delve into the origins of a dual-gene third-tier warrior. Besides, there’s a high probability that he is one. Hao, without going into details, aren’t these ten hunters commissioned by Kuang Zhuoma also of mysterious origin? In the Age of Winter, is it rare to find people with secrets? The clearer the water, the fewer fish there are; having these thorny characters around could relieve some pressure off Kuang Zhuoma.”

Hao’s expression softened a bit, but he still said, “I still insist, we should assign a third-tier soldier from our team to watch over him, in place of Abaningma. Don’t let him pull any stunts.”

“Ha~” Ji Ou’s tone was peculiar, “Shall I turn back now, your excellency Commander? I fear those people have already entered the heart of the Great Demon Lake.”

“There’s still time; it’s just a bit more troublesome.”

Hao said seriously.

“Young man in white, don’t push your luck.”

Ji Ou gave him a roll of the eyes, and while Yin Xiong didn’t say a word, his expression wasn’t too pleased either.

Turning back now to catch up with Li Yan and sneak another spy on him would not only displease the man himself, but also wouldn’t sit well with Yin Xiong’s pride.

Perhaps sensing Yin Xiong’s thoughts, Hao said bluntly, “Pride is a small matter; we can’t afford to leave loose ends. If you’re worried about face, give me a vehicle, and I’ll play the villain.”

Yin Xiong brought his fingers together, “Hao, I know you’re meticulous in your work, but you’ve always been at headquarters and lack experience working in the branch bases. I’ve been dealing with organizations big and small in this godforsaken place for years, I hope you trust my judgment.”

“…”

Hao wasn’t convinced by Yin Xiong, but once Yin Xiong said these words, there was no room left for disagreement.

“Fine, give me the map, and I’ll go over the operation plan one more time.”

Hao said.

“No problem.”

“I really don’t get what you guys are arguing about; if that guy dares to chase us into this mess, why not just finish him off?”

A husky voice chimed in, a blue flame igniting from the man’s index finger. He was sitting in the relatively dark back seat, and only an eight-inch cigar, sharp as a quenched knife, protruded from the darkness.

“Put out the cigar.”

Zheng Hao’s view of the map was obstructed by the blue smoke, and veins began to pop on his forehead.

“Hey, how much longer till we get there?”

Before the man smoking the cigar could respond, a languid female voice came from the back.

“About twenty minutes, JOJO sis,”

Ji Ou replied, interestingly without any gesture, and the armored vehicle moved forward on its own.

The woman muttered some complaints, and a shapely and long leg clad in mesh stockings stretched from the back seat, a beautifully pedicured foot in red nail polish gently kicking Zheng Hao’s waist, “Hey, Hao, keep me company for a chat, will you…”

Zheng Hao felt he was on the verge of exploding.

“Everybody just calm down!”

Yin Xiong roared at the back.

The flame died, and the woman huffed, retracting her foot.

“Sorry, Hao. Our people are used to throwing their weight around in the branch bases, they’ve gone wild, they mean no harm.”

It seemed that Yin Xiong was the one who had the most authority among this group.

“I understand, in any corner, a third-tier special forces fighter has the right to be proud.”

The man identified as Hao looked back, “I can earn your approval and respect in the same manner you use among yourselves, but that’s after we complete this mission.”

No one spoke in the darkness; the atmosphere grew a bit oppressive.

Yin Xiong tried to lighten the mood with a laugh, “Speaking of which, Danzuo Automobile really took a hit this time. I heard they used the excuse of clearing out migrants to go after the Black Star fugitives. But then one of the ‘Four Heavenly Kings,’ Vaisravana, crashed without reason, and the folks from Medicine Buddha are heartbroken as if they’ve lost a leg…”

With everyone’s conversation, the tense and deadly armored convoy rolled into the heart of the Great Demon Lake…

…

Li Yan sat in the corner of the carriage, kneading his calf and staring with a smile at the team in front of him.

There were a total of nineteen people. Kuang Zhuoma had assigned a third-order direct guard soldier to each Wilderness Hunter who had accepted the commission. Everyone had one, except for Li Yan—his assigned soldier was now lying on a nursing bed.

The military green pickup truck circled the broken walls and ruins around Great Demon Lake. When the previously planned entrance was reached, the driver at the front would remind the hired mercenaries to get out and face their clearing areas.

In a short while, more than half of the people were off the truck.

“Song Zuo, Liu Yisi.”

Li Yan heard a familiar name, Liu Yisi, who was Abaningma’s companion from last night—the Salamander State Frankenstein.

Coincidentally, Song Zuo was that bandaged old man holding a legendary firearm.

Liu Yisi cast a wary and disgusted glance at Song Zuo. Apart from the fierce and brutal firearm, the persistent stench from old Song Zuo reminded him constantly that this was a “mule” with mutant infections.

Infected tissues contaminated by radiation were infectious…

Song Zuo rubbed out his cigarette with fingers covered in black and hardened calluses, stood up, and leapt off the pickup. Just as Liu Yisi was about to jump off as well, the dark muzzle of a gun poked into the vehicle from outside, pressing against Liu Yisi’s head, and a surging scent of death filled the air.

“What do you mean by this?”

Liu Yisi was both startled and angry.

“I don’t trust strangers I partner with. You have two choices. First, get out of the truck right now, go in with me, and then die inside, or second, stay on the truck. What happens next has nothing to do with me. You have five seconds to decide,” Song Zuo said with a murderous aura, his wrinkled face sporting black and white stubble with food particles caught in it.

“Time’s up.”

He began to back away, letting the gun barrel sag and withdraw from the pickup.

Liu Yisi’s face turned from pale to white, but old Song Zuo’s grim little eyes haunted his mind.

The old diseased mule was serious.

In the end, as the pickup started up again, Liu Yisi chose a compromise. He would enter Great Demon Lake half an hour after Song Zuo entered the ruins.

The pickup began to shake again, and about ten minutes later, Li Yan, peering through a gap in the curtains, saw that the truck was rolling over scorched skeletons.

What came into his view was acre upon acre of charred garbage. They twisted like intertwined earthworms, mounding everywhere and providing a scene that could scare someone with trypophobia out of sleep.

“Li Yan, Abaningma. Oh right, he didn’t come.”

The truck stopped, and the Kuang Zhuoma Soldier glanced at Li Yan, “After you’ve cleared the area, meet at the blue point marked on the map. Good luck.”

Li Yan jumped off the truck neatly, and as the pickup moved on, he was left alone facing a landscape littered with charred human bones and broken bricks and tiles.

The black sand rolled endlessly. Behind Li Yan stood a decaying building, looking sinister and terrifying. Meanwhile, in his status bar, there was a new line that read “exposure to radioactive materials.”

Suddenly, a fierce red sunlight broke through the dense clouds, forcing Li Yan to shield his eyes with a frown. He had experienced the Age of Winter more than once, where sunlight blazing on the skin felt like sharp knives raining from the sky.

“Clearing…”

Li Yan stepped high and low on the charred land, quickly approaching a building whose exterior was relatively intact.

“Zombies…I wonder if they fear the sun?”

Li Yan tilted his head, eyeing the dark staircase. He didn’t wait long before stepping up, as dust scattered and red brick dust piled up on the windowsills.

In the silent building, only his footsteps could be heard. But Li Yan found many messy footprints, along with dried bloodstains and withered hair. More interestingly, he found a pot steaming hot! Inside it were milky white substances—it was unclear what was being boiled, but undeniably, there were signs of recent human activity.

He looked around, casually picking up an old-fashioned tape recorder. Ever since he had mastered Magic Motion Technology, he had become increasingly interested in gadgets like this.

Li Yan fiddled with the switches on the tape recorder, not expecting the deafening music that suddenly blared from the speaker!

“Do not disturb us, do not boast and bluff!”

“Do not threaten us, or play with fire!”

“If an enemy dares to take a risk, to test our strength!”

“Then they will never again dare, to test anything!”

A roar approached rapidly, and a nimble black shadow leaped out from the darkness, its rotting face twisted with ferocity!